Manifestation of the Flag Simulacrum

*Survey Flags, those funny yellow Flags you find all over the burn these days, are a rapidly growing menace.* Flags have been sighted in places as varied as Alchemy, Euphoria, Florida en Fuego, To The Moon, Nowhere, Lakes of Fire, and even Myrtle Beach and UC Berkeley. This memetic virus is a pure replicator rotated into existence by the Crystal, a lightly humming otherworldly object at the center of the Memento Moebius geodesic dome. The Flag’s goal is to spread itself to fill the Flag vacuum, and we are its unwitting pawns. It is not you who moves the Flag, it is the Flag who moves you. We are animated by an inanimate object.

*It is a well kept secret among Geomancers that sometimes at the center of a pentagram whose points are Flag may manifest a Crystal.* This effect arises as follows. At the midpoint between any two Flags is an implied Flag (Flags are actually a metaphor for implied Flags). Between two implied Flags is a 2nd-order implied Flag. Between second-order implied Flags is a 3rd-order implied Flag and so on. Taking the limit, the Crystal at the center is a physical manifestation of an infinite-order implied Flag, but the manifestation only occurs when the implied Flag fractal is correctly aligned with the 5th dimensional ley facet, and such. At Alchemy 2016, the Flag/Crystal duality was illustrated with the CORE Effigy project Manifestation of the *Crystal* Simulacrum, depicting a Flag within a Crystal. This year’s project, Manifestation of the *Flag* Simulacrum, illustrates the other side of the coin - Crystals manifesting between Flags.

*The objective of this project is to bring education on auspicious placement of Flags (Geomancy) and knowledge of Flags themselves (Vexillomancy) to the Flagless masses.* Cursed with Original Flaglessness, these troglodytes run amok with their Flags barely comprehending the eldritch forces with which they play. Knowledge of the Flags has so far been ineffectively spread by the first handful of people to experience Flagnostic trances and this state of affairs must be rectified. Furthermore, some fraction of the Flagless masses resist submission to Flags and refuse to dedicate precious attention cycles to them, preferring to focus on “other aspects of the burn”. This project will shrink this malignant population until they either succumb to Flag psychosis like the rest of us or are torn apart by the Flag vacuum.

In order to accomplish the objective, a Mobile Geomantic Command Center will be constructed. *The centerpiece of this mobile art-cart will be a map of the burn engraved into a sheet of high quality plywood cut into the shape of a large pentagon.* The most interesting map is one which alters the landscape it depicts in the course of making the map. With this in mind, the map will be drilled numerous small holes which may be filled with pegs. At hand will be numerous miniature Flags and miniature Crystals attached to pegs which may be plugged into the map, as well as a miniature replica of the cart constructed with 3D printer to keep track of the location of the cart itself. As the cart is maneuvered through the burn, the location of Flags will be updated on the map as their movement is tracked manually in real time. In order to illuminate the Hidden Pentagrams, rubber bands will be at hand to stretch between Flags on the map. This will aid in placement of the Crystals on the map, and perhaps even placement of actual Crystals at the appropriate locations in the Flag vacuum. An algorithm may be developed to guide the movement of the cart with respect to the Flags, allowing the operator of the Geomantic Command Center to submit themselves fully to the will of the Flags.

Besides a map, the Geomantic Command Center will support numerous accoutrements. *An old laptop running the Survey Flags video game will be attached via a swivel arm to make available yet another Flag/Crystal duality simulator.* A telescope available to spy Flags from afar and point out Flags of interest to passers-by. A hidden Bluetooth speaker will continually play a stream of pre-recorded burn banter, while hair scrunchies with attached miniature fake microphones will be gifted to Signifiers (Flag bearers) to attach to their Flags to create confusion. Flag repair supplies will be at hand. Temporary Flag tattoos and rubber stamps will be available to gift. A stack of Flag propaganda posters will be on-hand to place in appropriate public venues such as porta-potties, greeters station, and the effigy, and to gift to theme camps. The addition of battery-powered lighting will allow for Night Mode.

The base of the Geomantic Command Center will be a heavy duty garden cart. On top of this will be built structure to contain the various doodads such as miniature Flags and Crystals, repair kit, temporary tattoos, and so on, as well as house a swivel stool. On top of the stool will be the plywood sheet engraved with the map. The sides will be made of PVC plastic sheets, and decorated with Flag matter depicting Flag images, Flag k_ans, and services rendered. Furthermore, a sign will be mounted above by two poles attached to the sides of the cart.

This project will be considered a success if it increases the percentage of attendees suffering from Flag psychosis (temporary Flag obsession) to 12.5%, Flag madness (long-term Flag obsession) to 1%, and Flag insanity (permanent Flag obsession) to .03%.

*Planning this project has already involved input from numerous members of the first wave of Flagosophers, including Survey Flags creator Ian Elmore.* Telling people about this project has gotten more people interested in Flags and bringing them to events besides burns. Some of the tougher engineering questions will require me to seek knowledge on such things from other members of the community.

Creation

Most of the physical construction will take place at the hacker space Atlanta Freeside. Atlanta Freeside is frequently by numerous members of the Alchemy community who may become peripherally involved due to frequent contact as the project is constructed there. Smaller tasks may be performed at home, a nearby live/work space populated by other artists in the Alchemy community.

Realization

*The realization of this project solidifies the Flag’s grip on the collective subconscious of Alchemy attendees.* By polluting the subconscious with nonsense about Flags, hippies will have no time to concern themselves with anything but Flags, thus allowing Flags to win Art.

Flags appear quite innocent at first, making the virgin Signifier’s mind completely susceptible to being slathered with a very thick layer of metaphysical and spiritual baggage about Flags that is impossible to wash off. Once the Flag fractal has been seen, it cannot be unseen. Signifiers will retreat to camp with their solitary Flag, seeing them in an entirely new light, and then The Hunger will begin to consume them until they acquire as many Flags as they can lay their greedy hands on.

Beyond

The intent is for this to be a Flag apparatus that appears at burns all across the South. A new map will need to be made for each burn but otherwise this is a project that I’d like to get several years of use out of. *A possible future upgrade would be to replace the map with one etched into glass over an infinity mirror, and to use miniatures on the map with LEDs.* The infinity mirror will then depict implied Flags directly, a feat never imagined before by even the highest level Flag authorities.

To the knowledge of our best Vexillosaints, the goal of the Flags is to establish itself as a decentralized collective intelligence. Numerous warring Flag cults will form across the burnscape, eventually culminating in the Flag vacuum forcing Burning Man to invest thousands to bring Flags to Burning Man. *Flags are their own medium, and it is the nature of every form of art to break beyond the bounds of its medium.*